Monday, May 27, 2013

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.
There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen
cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day.
There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were
decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in
1867, "Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping" by Nella L. Sweet carried the
dedication "To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of
the Confederate Dead" (Source: Duke University's Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920).
While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial
Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it's difficult to prove
conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many
separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or
spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860's
tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed
honorably to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving
his official proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very
first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial
Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about
coming together to honor those who gave their all.

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John
Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11,
and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the
graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.
The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in
1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South
refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days
until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just
those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died
fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the
last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of
1971 (P.L. 90 - 363) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal
holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate
day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26
in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South
Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis' birthday) in Louisiana and
Tennessee.

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies on
Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war.
She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and
co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need. Later a
Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States and learned of
this new custom started by Ms.Michael and when she returned to France,
made artificial red poppies to raise money for war orphaned children and
widowed women. This tradition spread to other countries. In 1921, the
Franco-American Children's League sold poppies nationally to benefit war
orphans of France and Belgium. The League disbanded a year later and
Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help. Shortly before Memorial Day in
1922 the VFW became the first veterans' organization to nationally sell
poppies. Two years later their "Buddy" Poppy program
was selling artificial poppies made by disabled veterans. In 1948 the
US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role in founding the National
Poppy movement by issuing a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.

Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years.
Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of
Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the graves of the fallen are
increasingly ignored, neglected. Most people no longer remember the
proper flag etiquette for the day. While there are towns and cities that
still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in
decades. Some people think the day is for honoring any and all dead,
and not just those fallen in service to our country.

There are a few notable exceptions. Since the late 50's on the Thursday
before Memorial Day, the 1,200 soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry place
small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 gravestones at
Arlington National Cemetery. They then patrol 24 hours a day during the
weekend to ensure that each flag remains standing. In 1951, the Boy
Scouts and Cub Scouts of St. Louis began placing flags on the 150,000
graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as an annual Good Turn, a
practice that continues to this day. More recently, beginning in 1998,
on the Saturday before the observed day for Memorial Day, the Boys
Scouts and Girl Scouts place a candle at each of approximately 15,300
grave sites of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania
National Military Park on Marye's Heights (the Luminaria Program). And in 2004, Washington D.C. held its first Memorial Day parade in over 60 years.

To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the "National Moment of Remembrance"
resolution was passed on Dec 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time,
for all Americans "To voluntarily and informally observe in their own
way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are
doing for a moment of silence or listening to 'Taps."

The Moment of Remembrance is a step in the right direction to returning
the meaning back to the day. What is needed is a full return to the
original day of observance. Set aside one day out of the year for the
nation to get together to remember, reflect and honor those who have
given their all in service to their country.
But what may be needed to return the solemn, and even sacred, spirit
back to Memorial Day is for a return to its traditional day of
observance. Many feel that when Congress made the day into a three-day
weekend in with the National Holiday Act of 1971, it made it all the
easier for people to be distracted from the spirit and meaning of the
day. As the VFW stated in its 2002 Memorial Day address: "Changing the
date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning
of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general
public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day."

On January 19, 1999 Senator Inouye introduced bill S 189 to the Senate
which proposes to restore the traditional day of observance of Memorial
Day back to May 30th instead of "the last Monday in May". On April 19,
1999 Representative Gibbons introduced the bill to the House (H.R.
1474). The bills were referred the Committee on the Judiciary and the
Committee on Government Reform.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

I haven't written much about spanking my wife has received lately because there haven't been any. You learn over time that being consistent with spanking at the beginning of your relationship sets a strong foundation. Once she's tested the water and realized you will actually spank her for something, even if it's over and over for the same thing, she begins to find that over the lap is where she's going to end up so the behavior stops.

Take texting for example. I reminded my wife that when she goes somewhere I simple want her to text to tell me she made it safely. All she has to text is, "I'm here", and that's it. I just want to know that she made it safely. After getting spanked for not texting she finally realized that's what she should do. Now I get texts telling me she's made it or on her way back and she doesn't go through the discomfort of not sitting. Spanking works!

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Life is a funny thing. My wife has been busy lately with a home project and business she's wanted to do so I've been there for her to encourage and help her when I can. But, it just now dawned on me that she's been able to sneak by with NOT going to the gym lately. In fact it's been weeks. So what do you the readers think? Should I give her a long hard spanking for the weeks she has missed or should I give her a spanking everyday for the next 3 days?